And then a hero comes along (13 Photos)

“The boys are inseparable,” said the father of Noah and Lucas Aldrich.

Six-year-old Lucas was born with Lissencephaly, an extremely rare brain malformation. He’s confined to a wheelchair.

His older brother, Noah, heard about a local youth triathlon. He really wanted to participate, but he refused to do it unless he could bring his brother along. That’s no easy task. The equipment alone added 50 lbs. to his brother’s 40 lb. frame. So, the 8-year-old trained for three months to build the strength and endurance it would take to push and pull his brother through all three stages.

And they did it…

When Noah was asked what he loves most about his brother, he grabs his brother’s hand, “I love everything about him. He is perfect.”

3

There’s a treacherous cliff in Australia near Sydney harbor called “the Gap.” Each year, around 50 people take their own lives by jumping off the cliff.

There’s a small house near “The Gap” where a local man named Don Ritche lives. The main window of the house faces the jump off point directly. When Don purchased the house, he knew about the jumpers, and he knew about the forward-facing window.

But he purchased the house anyway. He felt he was meant to be there.

Don will walk out of his house and offer the despondent jumper tea and strike up a conversation. He has been credited with saving hundreds of lives over the years and was recently awarded the Order of Australia Bravery Medal. The locals simply call him “The Angel of the Gap.”

4

Even back when Jordin Tootoo was in Nashville with the Predators, he was known to be a guy who did right by the fans. With the Red Wings, little changed. One night, as he was leaving the ice, Jordin saw this boy. He was standing on the bench yelling, “Tootoo! Toootoo!”

Jordin reached out and handed his hockey stick to the boy. The boy’s reaction is priceless.

5

For the elderly, the nursing home can often be a profoundly lonely place, especially for those without family. Then last year, an 8th Grader named Jacob Cramer began a letter-writing campaign, writing dozens of kind letters to the elderly. “The elderly really embrace the power of the written word. They loved it, so I kept going.”

Jacob founded Love for the Elderly, a website dedicating to getting letters to the elderly who have no one to care for them. Submissions can be written or sent online right here.

6

Sometimes it’s the little things. I don’t know who this chivalrous gentleman is, but we could use more people like him.

7

An 11 year-old girl named Amy Hosmer was diagnosed with a brain tumor at only 2 years of age. The doctors didn’t think she would make it, but they didn’t expect Amy to be such a fighter. The 2-year-old beat cancer only to have it return 9 years later.

To keep her spirits up, Amy sang a lot. She had always dreamed of having a recording contract. She’d even written a few songs she hoped to produce.

A local recording studio, Rotation Records, heard Amy’s story and signed her to a record deal. They even sent a limo to pick her up for her recording session.

8

Her song “This Camp” is about her time with other children who have cancer at Ronald McDonald camp. The local media banded together to have a huge press junket for the song’s release so she felt like a star.

9

Earlier this year, the Plaza Cleaners in Portland, Oregon posted this simple sign, If you are unemployed and need an outfit clean for an interview, we will clean it for FREE.

People brought in suits, ties, and slacks. Kathy Butters, the manager said, “We just wanted to help people get that little push they need. And the smile on their faces when they get these fresh clothes back is worth it for me.”

When asked how much the charitable effort has cost the company, she replied, “How can you put a dollar figure on something like that?”

10

Five-year-old Jocelyn Rojas was playing in her front yard in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, when she vanished. Jocelyn was abducted by a man who lured her by offering ice cream.

After hearing about the abduction, Temar Boggs, 15, and his friend took off on their bicycles to search. About a half-mile away, they spotted Jocelyn in a sedan and gave chase.

The two teens chased the alleged kidnapper on their bikes for 15 heart-pounding minutes. The driver apparently knew he was being followed and gave up. “He stopped at the end of the hill and let her out, and she ran to me and said that she needed her mom,” Temar said.

“He’s our hero. There is just no words to say,” Jocelyn’s mother exclaimed.

11

At the age of 14, James Harrison underwent major chest surgery, during which he lost 13 liters of blood. James told himself that, if he lived, he would continually give blood to honor those who donated their blood to him.

Then at age 18 it was discovered that James has extremely rare blood. Mr. Harrison has an antibody in his plasma that prevents babies from dying from Rhesus Disease, a severe form of anemia.

Every month since he was 18 James has been donating blood. He has now passed the 1,000 donation mark and saved countless infants’ lives.

12

Arizona State’s Anthony Robles placed his crutches next to his coach’s chair, hopped out on the wrestling mat, and put his toe on the line. When the whistle blew, the tenacious wrestler born with one leg would be three periods from winning the National Championship and finishing the season 36-0. It had been a long road to that moment.

“When I was a kid, I was a terrible wrestler. I weighed 90 lbs. and I had one leg. Then my mother told me one day, ‘God made you for a reason, I think, son, and I think that reason was for wrestling. You are going to inspire the world.’”